Poetry Pea - haiku and other English Language Japanese short forms

Join Patricia on the Poetry Peacast for S9E38, featuring haiku and senryu inspired by paragliding in Interlaken, Switzerland, with David Cox as editor of the August Video Prompt.
Discover the poems selected by David Cox, as Patricia explores the beauty of the Swiss Alps, the history of Interlaken, the spectacular Jungfrau region, and even a few James Bond connections. From silent paragliders floating between church steeples to fleeting shadows on mountain trails, these haiku capture the many ways poets interpret a single moment.
This episode also features bonus haiku and senryu about flying, wind, kites, sky and the natural world, including work by Swiss poets Gregor Graf, Valeria Barouch and Gerard Krebs.
Whether you write haiku, senryu or simply love short-form poetry, join us for a celebration of poetic observation, imagination and the inspiration we find in the world around us.
In this episode:
August 2026 Video Prompt, curated by David Cox
Selected haiku and senryu inspired by paragliding
Interlaken, the Jungfrau and the Swiss Alps
Bonus poems about wind, sky, kites and nature
Haiku by Swiss poets, including Gerard Krebs
Poetry, travel, and the art of noticing
Enjoying the Poetry Peacast? You can support Poetry Pea by becoming a member, purchasing the Poetry Pea Journal, making a donation, leaving a review, or sharing the podcast with your poetry-loving friends.
Poets featured today:
Gregor Graf
Valeria Barouch
Gerard Krebs
Ryan Cohen
Alicia Samson
Anna Yin
Tracy Davidson
Shilan Amir
Norbert Kovacs
Paul Callus
Rohan Buettel
Jacek Margolak
Joanna Ashwell
Kim Klugh
Tom Bierovic
Melissa Dennison
Denisa Hansutova
Federico C Peralta
Tony Williams
Brent Partridge
Debbie Strange
Issa
Taigi
Kim Russell
Eavonka Ettinger
Diana Salusia
Emil Karla
Baisali Chatterjee Dutt
 
Thank you for listening, and as always, keep writing!
Visit Poetry Pea for more haiku, senryu, poetry prompts, journals and community features.

Welcome back to the Poetry Peacast! After a rather unfortunate disappearing act by my voice, I’m back behind the microphone with a special episode celebrating haibun from Tendrils, Volume 3, the Poetry Pea journal of haibun.
In this episode, I read the Editor’s Choice and Honourable Mentions from the journal, outstanding haibun by Cathryn Daley, Mark Forrester and Sara Winteridge.
I explore what makes a successful haibun, particularly the relationship between prose and haiku. I look at how the haiku can bring its own distinct “utterance” to a piece, add emotional resonance and create a dialogue with the prose rather than simply illustrating it.
I also share some thoughts on stand-alone haiku, drawing on Sean O’Connor’s discussion of contemporary haibun and his definition of haibun as a prosimetrum: a combination of prose and poetry.
Featured works include On Repeat, Largesse and Sara Winteridge’s haunting The Order of Things, which explores grief, dementia, memory and the natural world.
If you’re interested in writing haibun, haiku or short-form poetry, there’s plenty here to think about – and hopefully plenty to inspire your own writing.
You’ll find links in the show notes to Tendrils, Volume 3, Sean O’Connor’s article on contemporary haibun, and Vandana Parashar’s We, the People.
Thanks for listening, and as always, keep writing!

Welcome to the Poetry Pea July Video Prompt, featuring a wonderful collection of haiku, senryū and short poetry selected and curated by guest editor Matt Snyder. Thank you Matt.
This month’s episode comes to you from the beautiful Lauterbrunnen Valley in Switzerland — Tolkien’s Rivendell — where the July Video Prompt was filmed.
Patricia begins with a bonus poem of her own before sharing the poems chosen by Matt for this episode and the forthcoming Poetry Pea Journal 3:26.
There's a little mention of Patricia’s insistence that a kigo, or seasonal word, is essential when writing haiku. You may disagree — and that’s perfectly fine. Poetry needs a little healthy disagreement now and then!
If you enjoy the episode, please subscribe, leave a review wherever you listen, or head over to YouTube and leave a comment. And if you’d like to support Poetry Pea, you can find membership and donation links in the show notes.
Thank you for listening, and most importantly, keep writing.
Poets featured:
Sandip Chauhan
Alicia Samson
Soumya Mukherjee
Joanna Ashwell
Lakshmi Iyer
Tracy Davidson
Rohan Buettel
Valerie Green
David Cox
Kim Klugh
Vikram Kolmannskog
Editor’s Choice
Neena Singh

Yvonne Hardenbrook, Haiku in English the first hundred years, Kacian, Rowland and Burns
Jennifer Sutherland, Chrysanthemum, Issue 27 from April 2020
Dina E Cox, Full of Moonlight, Haiku Society of America 2016 Member’s Anthology.
Linda L Ludwig, Little Marvels, 2024
Sōseki trs Ueda[i]
Fred Schofield, Blithe Spirit, Vol. 9 No.2 June 1999
Bona M Santos, PPJ Autumn 2020
Ben Oliver, an Honourable mention from journal 3:24
Daniela Misso, from episode 22 of the fourth series.
Roberta Beach Jacobson, PPJ Autumn 2020
Bisshie

[i] Modern Japanese Haiku Makoto Ueda, University of Toronto Press, 1976

This week on Poetry Pea Summer Classics, we're revisiting one of the most joyful forms of Japanese linked verse: renku.
Sit back and enjoy readings of three collaborative renku created by members of the Poetry Pea community: Drinking Moonrise, Wing to Wing, and Spring Table. These beautifully crafted linked poems demonstrate how individual voices can come together to create something richer than the sum of their parts.
If today's episode inspires you, you'll find these renku, along with many more haiku, senryu, tanka and haibun, in the Poetry Pea Journal back catalogue. Links are in the show notes.
Get involved with the Poetry Pea Video Prompt
Have you written your poem yet? Every month there’s a brand-new Poetry Pea Video Prompt to spark your creativity. To submit your poem, simply leave it in the comments beneath the YouTube Video Prompt. If your poem isn't in the comments, it hasn't been entered for consideration. If our guest editor selects your poem/s they’ll be published in a future Poetry Pea Journal and featured in a podcast episode.
Support Poetry Pea
If you enjoy the Poetry Pea Podcast and would like to help keep independent poetry and podcasts thriving, please consider becoming a member, making a small donation, buying us a coffee, volunteering your time, or simply recommending the podcast to a friend. Sharing episodes on social media and leaving a rating or review on Apple Podcasts also helps more people discover the Poetry Pea community.
Thank you for listening and for being part of Poetry Pea. Keep writing!

Take a journey into the beautifully observed world of poet Vandana Parashar in this Poetry Pea Summer Classic. Originally recorded as part of our popular reading series, Vandana reads from her acclaimed collection Alone, I Am Not, sharing poems rich in humanity, quiet insight and the extraordinary moments hidden within everyday life.
We also celebrate the publication of her more recent collection, We, the People, a book that continues her thoughtful exploration of the lives we share. Check out the link in the show notes.
Whether you're discovering Vandana's work for the first time or returning to enjoy it again, this episode is a reminder of why her poetry resonates with readers around the world.
In this episode:
• Vandana Parashar reads from Alone, I Am Not
🎥 Join this month's Poetry Pea Video Prompt on YouTube. Watch our guest editor's short film, write a haiku, senryū or tanka inspired by it, and post your poem in the comments. Selected poems may be featured in a future Poetry Pea Journal and read on the podcast.
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